Lunar New Year soup has sticking power

Published 4:00 am, Wednesday, February 6, 2008

LUNARYEAR06_02_JOHNLEE.JPG SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF - JAN 17: Korean Rice Cake Soup for Cindy Lee's Lunar New Year story.By JOHN LEE/SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

LUNARYEAR06_02_JOHNLEE.JPG SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF - JAN 17: Korean Rice Cake Soup for Cindy Lee's Lunar New Year story.By JOHN LEE/SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

Photo: John Lee, SFC

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LUNARYEAR06_02_JOHNLEE.JPG
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF - JAN 17: Korean Rice Cake Soup for Cindy Lee's Lunar New Year story.
By JOHN LEE/SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

LUNARYEAR06_02_JOHNLEE.JPG
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF - JAN 17: Korean Rice Cake Soup for Cindy Lee's Lunar New Year story.
By JOHN LEE/SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

Photo: John Lee

Lunar New Year soup has sticking power

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For the past week, most Asian supermarkets have been bustling with people scrambling about, getting ingredients to prepare for their big feast.

Tomorrow marks the beginning of a new lunar year, the Year of the Rat, celebrated throughout Asia with days, even weeks, of feasting.

In Korea and Vietnam, the celebration usually lasts up to three days, while in China, festivities run as long as two weeks. Many will start food preparations a week in advance and with the Lunar New Year being one of the most important holidays, no amount of food is considered too much.

Called seollal in Korea, it's one of the holidays I most look forward to. There are three main events that take place on New Year's Day: an offering service for the deceased (chare), the big feast, and paying respect to our elders (sebae).

When I was growing up, my parents would wake us up early on New Year's morning so we could put on our traditional Korean clothes (hanbok) and head over to our eldest uncle's house, the usual meeting place for family functions. Upon entering his house, everyone would exchange the same New Year's greeting, "Sae hae bohk mahnhee bah du saeyo," which translates to, "I hope you receive much fortune in the new year."

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My mother would quickly join the rest of the women in the kitchen to help with preparations, while we children hovered, trying to get a sample of the egg-battered meats or vegetables (jun), rice cakes and anything else within our reach. Eventually, the kids would be banned from the kitchen.

As soon as all the food was ready, a long table was set up on one end of the living room and everyone gathered to prepare for chare, the ceremonious offering of the New Year's meal to the deceased.

Typically, the table acts as an altar and is filled with plates and bowls of food including marinated root vegetables, braised short ribs, grilled whole fish, variety of jun, sweet and savory rice cakes, jujubes, Asian pears and the New Year's rice cake soup, ddukguk.

These would all be set on the table with a small pitcher of liquor. No one is allowed to eat from this table until after chare, and I remember getting into quite a bit of trouble one year for sneaking a bite. The ritual begins with everyone facing the altar and bowing twice, followed by an offering of food and liquor to our ancestors. Two more bows complete chare, then it is finally time to eat.

After everyone is stuffed, the food is cleared and the children eagerly get ready for sebae, a ritual where children pay respects to their elders by bowing to them and getting money in return. After the last adult receives sebae, the children gleefully gather around to see how much money they got. Once the excitement dies down, the rest of the day is filled with games and more food.

Now that my family is spread out, seollal is celebrated on a much smaller scale, but we always have to eat ddukguk, the traditional New Year's soup. Other side dishes vary but this soup of chewy, glutinous rice cakes swimming in a rich beef broth is a must.

Because of the rice cake's sticky nature, ddukguk is eaten on New Year's in hopes that good fortune will "stick" to us. Aside from the oval-shaped rice cakes, there is no rule on what other ingredients are added. Sometimes, a week before seollal, I see my mom making dumplings, and I know where they're going. Other times, she keeps things simple by adding green onions and eggs to the soup with toasted nori as garnish. Whatever my mom ends up using, the result is always a savory, soothing soup that is a perfect start to the new year or any other day.

In Daly City, my friend Victoria is also busy helping her mother prepare for Tet Nguyen Dan, or Vietnamese New Year. As I hear her stories, I realize how many similarities there are between our cultures. Like seollal, Tet begins on the morning of New Year's Day with an offering of food to the ancestors, followed by a big feast.

There are two things every Vietnamese family must have on their table for Tet. The first is banh chung - glutinous, sweet rice cakes stuffed with ground mung beans and pork, wrapped in banana leaves, and served with pickled daikon and leek heads. But because they're so labor-intensive to make, Victoria purchases thick rolls of banh chung at the Vietnamese market, which are fully cooked and ready to serve.

A dish that is not as laborious but equally important is thit kho, a pork stew made with fresh coconut juice, fish sauce and fried hard-boiled eggs. Many families prepare a big pot of this stew; it tastes even better a day or two later.

Chinese families kick off the celebration tonight with a New Year's feast consisting of items like whole steamed fish, golden purses and dumplings. Nian gao, or New Year Cake, is consumed throughout the two-week period. (For recipes and more information on nian gao, see the link with this story on sfgate.com/food.)

But no matter the traditions, all celebrations include something sweet, to ensure a sweet new year, and in some cases, something red, for luck and fortune. The Vietnamese have a perfect way to combine the two - in sweet, icy chunks of watermelon.

Egg-battered Zucchini & Shiitake Mushrooms (Jun)

Serves 4-6

"Jun" refers to a variety of egg-battered meats or vegetables that are pan-fried. The best way to make these is to flour each piece and dip in egg mixture one at a time and add it to the hot saute pan. To save time, my mother used to make these a few days in advance and refry them just until heated through. Serve them with a mixture of soy sauce and a drop of rice vinegar as the dipping sauce.

1 zucchini, washed and sliced into 1/4-inch-thick coins

15 to 20 shiitake mushrooms, cleaned and de-stemmed

-- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

3 eggs, beaten well

3 tablespoons canola oil

-- Soy sauce

-- A drop of rice vinegar

Instructions: Season zucchini coins and mushrooms with salt and pepper. Place flour and eggs in two separate shallow dishes. Lightly coat the zucchini and mushrooms with the flour.

Heat oil in a large saute pan, over medium-high heat. Dip each piece of vegetable into the flour, then the egg mixture, coating well and add to the pan right away. Cook until each side turns a golden brown, about 1-2 minutes per side, depending on thickness. Serve with soy sauce mixed with a drop of rice vinegar.

Vietnamese New Year's Stew (Thit Kho)

Serves 4

This recipe is from my friend Victoria's mother, who makes this every year for Tet. She buys the pork butt, fish sauce and fresh coconut from Asian markets like Dai Thanh Supermarket (420 S. Second St., San Jose) and 99 Ranch Market (250 Skyline Plaza, Daly City). To get juice from the coconut, simply slice off the top with a sharp knife and pour juice out. Serve with jasmine rice.

The eggs:

4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled

1 quart vegetable oil

The stew:

1 to 1 1/2 pounds boneless pork butt, quartered with skin and fat left on

-- Juice from 1 fresh coconut

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon minced shallots

-- Boiling water

1 1/4 cups fish sauce + more to taste

-- Chopped cilantro (optional)

For the eggs: Fill a medium saucepan with oil and bring to 350°. With a slotted spoon, gently drop an egg into the hot oil and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes, rotating it for even frying. You can cook two eggs at a time. Remove from oil and allow to cool. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the stew: In a medium saucepan, add the pork and coconut juice to cover about 3/4 of the pork. Add garlic and shallots to the liquid and set pan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer until liquid is almost fully evaporated, about 30 minutes. Flip over pieces of pork occasionally while simmering. The liquid will begin to caramelize and turn a golden brown color. When there is barely any liquid left in the pan, pour in boiling water to just cover the pork. Add fish sauce and fried eggs. Increase heat and bring liquid to a boil then reduce again to a simmer. Cook until meat is tender, about 30-40 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings with more fish sauce.

When ready to eat, quarter the eggs. Plate up the pork and add liquid from the stew, as desired. Garnish with eggs and cilantro and serve.

Due to the nature of this recipe, an accurate analysis is not possible. However, please be aware that fish sauce, an ingredient in the broth, contains a significant amount of sodium. People concerned about sodium should moderate their intake.

Korean Rice Cake Soup (Ddukguk)

Serves 4

This soup is usually eaten year-round and is a popular item in Korean restaurants. In my family, it was our Sunday morning meal. The rice cake ovalettes, Korean soy sauce and roasted seaweed can be found in most Korean markets including Kukje Market (2350 Junipero Serra Blvd., Daly City), Woori Market (1528 Fillmore St., San Francisco) and Hankook Supermarket (1092 E. El Camino Real, Sunnyvale). Korean soy sauce, which is mainly used in soups, is much milder and lighter in appearance than regular soy sauce. Other ingredients like dumplings or sauteed zucchini can be added to this recipe. If using dumplings, boil them separately and add in right before serving.

The beef broth:

1/2 pound beef brisket

2 green onions

3 to 4 cloves crushed garlic

The meat seasoning:

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons Korean soy sauce

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

The soup:

1 pound of Korean rice cake ovalettes

1 cup chopped green onion, in 1-inch lengths

1 egg, beaten

-- Salt and pepper to taste

-- Toasted seaweed sheets for garnish

For the broth: Place brisket in a large bowl and cover with of cold water for about an hour, letting excess blood drain out. Remove the brisket and discard water. In a large pot, add the brisket, 10 cups water, the green onions and garlic. Set heat on medium-high, and once water comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover partially and simmer for about 2 hours until meat is very tender. Remove from the heat and take brisket from the pot; reserve broth. Once cool enough to handle, slice the brisket into 1/4-inch thick slices.

For the seasoning: Combine garlic, Korean soy sauce, salt and pepper and rub on the meat. Set aside.

For the soup: Place rice ovalettes in a bowl, rinse with cold water and keep covered in cold water. Bring beef broth back to a rolling simmer and add the rice ovalettes to the pot. Let broth come to a boil again and add seasoned meat. Simmer uncovered until the rice ovalettes soften and the soup thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Add green onions and slowly pour in the beaten egg. Do not stir. Let the soup simmer for 1 minute.

Turn off the heat and ladle the soup into individual bowls. Garnish each bowl with some hand-crushed toasted seaweed.

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